Ursula Poznanski

Eine junge Frau erwacht eingesperrt in ihrer WG-Wohnung, zwei volle Tage fehlen in ihrer Erinnerung und im Bad liegt ein zerrissenes, blutiges Männer-T-Shirt. Kein schlechter Beginn für einen spannenden Krimithriller, der dazu noch vor dem Hintergrund der schönen Stadt Siena spielt, die mit jeder Menge schmaler Gassen und geheimer Gänge aufwarten kann. Doch leider leider werden die Möglichkeiten nicht genutzt, die sich aus diesen Grundlagen entwickeln lassen könnten.
Die Hauptfigur show more Nika, 19 Jahre jung und eine deutsche Austauschstudentin, die kaum der italienischen Sprache mächtig ist, widmet sich statt der aktiven Suche nach den Hintergründen ihrer Teilamnesie mehr ihren eigenen Befindlichkeiten: ängstlich, furchtsam und voller Heimweh. Irgendwann ging es mir wirklich auf die Nerven, immer wieder davon zu lesen, wie ihr die fehlenden Erinnerungen zu schaffen machen. Spätestens beim dritten Mal haben es wohl Alle verstanden, wie schlimm sie dran ist, da bin ich mir sicher. Keine Frage, die Geschichte ist grundsätzlich spanned. Aber da Nika sich nur mit vielen Mühen aufraffen kann, etwas zu unternehmen und stattdessen lieber ihr Schicksal beklagt, zieht sich das Ganze recht zäh dahin. Die anfänglich entdeckten Details, von denen es bedauerlicherweise viel zu wenige gibt, die zur Spannung und sicherlich auch zur Lösung beitragen sollen, erfüllen ihren Zweck, doch auch nicht mehr. Und was man über deren Hintergründe erfährt (die grausamen Zeichnungen, die spezielle Münze ...), ist viel zu dürftig; hier hätte sicherlich Vieles ausgeschmückt werden können.
Dennoch: Die Geschichte blieb immer noch spannend, wobei ich mich aber dabei erwischte, teilweise quer zu lesen - noch mehr Selbstmitleid konnte ich einfach nicht mehr ertragen ;-) Doch dann wurde es zum Ende hin nochmal packend, bis - die Auflösung kam. Schon der erste Teil hörte sich mehr nach einer Splatterparodie an, wäre aber wohl noch gerade so gegangen, doch der tatsächliche Schluss: Um Himmels Willen, liebe Frau Poznanski, was war denn da mit Ihnen los? War Ihnen Alles egal? Glaubwürdigkeit hin oder her?
Dass überdies noch eine Liebesromanze miteingebaut werden musste, fand ich völlig unnötig, aber Schwamm drüber. Doch so ein Ende, das hätte nun wirklich nicht sein müssen.
Ich bin mir sicher, es gibt richtig gute Bücher von Ursula Poznanski - 'Aquila' gehört jedoch nicht dazu! show less

The primary characters are interesting and engaging, and the story is top notch. Geocaching is central to the story, and it is explained clearly and briefly, avoiding tiresome information dumps. The mystery is a puzzle within a puzzle within a puzzle, great fun to think about as you go along. It's not terribly difficult to figure out the 'bad guy' before the reveal, but as that alone doesn't even begin to answer the puzzle, the book keeps your interest if you do figure it out. Another show more enjoyable aspect is that the 'bad guy' of the story isn't a cardboard cutout, this is a complex person with compelling reasons for his actions. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, even if I was a tad annoyed at the reluctance of both Beatrice and Florin to confess their feelings towards one another. Hopefully, this won't be the last we see of these characters. show less

Erebos is a fun, moody, thriller of a novel set in the world of computer gaming.

A mysterious disc is being passed around school, and students are being very secretive and acting strangely. When someone passes a copy of the disc to Nick Dunmore, he finds an incredibly addictive computer game called Erebos. The game wants to keep itself secret and seems to know things about him that it shouldn’t be able to. It assigns him tasks not only within the game, but in the real world too. When show more Erebos’s influence starts to have serious consequences in the real world, Nick must decide if he wants to win the game, or defeat it.

This is a fun book that does a good job of being exciting while also building a growing and pervasive sense of dread. The characters are a little two-dimensional, but they are interesting and mostly believable. Author Ursula Poznanski does a good job of creating a world and describing the moral dilemmas faced by characters in that world. Actions are sometimes divorced from consequences in the gaming world, but are real life actions that different when someone is offering you a reward for a morally dubious or downright dangerous act?

Some of the character interactions and conversations, particularly outside the game, are a little stilted, especially early in the novel. Some of that may be a result of translating the book from German to English. The description of the game and the depths to which players sink into it seems a little more immersive than should be possible in a game played on a contemporary computer. That being said, I was drawn into the incredibly compelling game within the book as well.

A game with a mind and a goal of its own is not exactly a new concept, but it is done well here. The contrast between players trying to win within the game with others outside the game trying to figure out and stop the game from reaching its ultimate goal is an interesting dynamic. The ending of the story raised my opinion of the book. The author made some smart choices and it paid off. I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book. Highly recommended. show less

"Congratulations -- You found it!
This container is part of a game, a kind of modern treasure hunt using GPS. If you've stumbled upon this by accident, then this hunt has come to an end for you. Close it again immediately and put it back where you found it. It's in your own best interest, trust me."

This book is a perfect mix. Crime AND centers around Geocaching. I don't know, it feels like the perfect book for me! As an avid cacher, I love that it opened the world of caching to many people show more that may have vaguely heard of it but didn't know much about it.

But something held me back from truly loving this book. I think the mystery was too slow. Or maybe I just read too much Young Adult, so a true adult crime book just hit me at weird time. Or maybe bad timing all together.

Either way, I was entertained but it did seem to drag a little in the middle. and I was slightly disappointed with the final reveal. show less